How to let your natural beauty shine through

Be yourself. Let your natural beauty shine.

Letting your natural beauty shine through is one of the most lovely, and empowering things you can do for yourself. What exactly do I mean by this? Let me explain. Natural beauty is a wholistic approach to our health and well being. Healthy people are happy people, and a true happy person, is always the most beautiful in the room. These individuals are always the ones that you want to get to know and be around. They somehow make you feel at ease, and happy too! To have your unique, natural beauty shine through, one must take care of not only the outside, but the inside of the body. So without further ado, here are some techniques to start your own natural beauty routine.

It all starts with skincare…getting that natural beauty glow.

First and foremost, if you want to have that natural beauty glow, you have to start with your skin. Eating lots of sugary junk food, not getting enough sleep, too much stress, and not taking care of your skin, will equate to a dull complexion and acne. It also makes you look older than you are! (and who wants that?) By filling your diet with loads of veggies, fruits, lean protein sources, and things like avocados, nuts, and seeds for healthy fats, you are on the right track to having that natural beauty glow.

You also need to drink water! Remove processed sugary drinks from your diet, and replace them with herbal teas and fresh clean water. In summer I love to have ice cold mint tea. It is so refreshing! Also try infusing your water with fresh fruit and cucumbers. It is always fun to come up with new combinations and flavors. Don’t be afraid to use fresh herbs in your water infusions as well. Try things like lemon balm, lavender, and rosemary. There are so many types of mint out there with various flavors too. I highly recommend getting some seeds and starting your own indoor herb garden. That way you can have fresh herbs year round to add to your food, and also your water.

A great idea for anyone on the go. Infuse your water with fruit, veggies, and herbs! So much better for your skin and health than sugary junk food drinks, filled with artificial flavors and sweeteners. Bottles and pitchers like this are available at Amazon.com.

Now that we have taken care of the inside, what about the outside?

As you read in a previous post here, I have exchanged my old skincare products with those that are organic, natural, or homemade. Removing as many toxins from our skincare products is a must. Our skin is our largest organ, and it is through the skin that we absorb many of the chemicals and toxins we are exposed to. Limiting these as much as possible helps one to achieve flawless skin. The less junk floating in our bodies, the more smooth our complexion becomes. I highly recommend reading the blog post mentioned here in this paragraph. You might find many of the chemicals listed in the blog post, in products you have in your skincare products, as well as haircare and home cleaning products. Get rid of as many as you can! Your health will thank you. There are many alternative skincare products out there that are a much better choice, as well as recipes to make your own on Pinterest. I have a few boards dedicated to this exact thing. Please read the labels of the products you buy. If the product in question contains a bunch of ingredients you can’t pronounce, chances are they aren’t the best choices for your health.

Buy only certified organic skincare products, or make your own.

Exercise and Fitness…for firm, tight, healthy skin…

What do you need to do to rid the body of all the excess toxins it has stored up? It isn’t fasting if that is what you are thinking. It’s sweating. Exercising on a regular basis not only keeps extra weight from accumulating on your body, it also tightens and firms the skin. People who are fit also look younger than they are. Combine a healthy diet with exercise, and you have the perfect fountain of youth! I highly recommend a mixture of weight training, cardio, and yoga.

Weight training builds muscle and actually make everything under your skin nice and tight. Don’t want that jiggly skin anymore? Pick up some weights! NO Ladies!! You WILL NOT GET HUGE FROM LIFTING WEIGHTS!! That is a total lie. You actually get smaller and tighter! The only way a woman can get “huge” from lifting weights is if she does steroids. PERIOD.

Lift some weights! Your body and skin will thank you!

Cardio is needed to keep our circulatory system in top working order. It also helps to shed fat. I recommend HIIT and running for the fastest results, but any form of cardio will do just fine. I love to mountain bike with my family on the weekends for a fun form of cardio.

mountain biking on weekends for me, is a fun way to get some cardio time in!Cardio for a healthy heart and fat loss

Yoga is amazing. It combats stress, and helps with lymph drainage! As we age, the more stiff our bodies become, and this can ruin quality of life. When you can’t get around or walk, you can’t care for yourself properly. No one wants to end up in an assisted living home. Fortunately for us, this is totally preventable if we just simply take care of ourselves. Yoga keeps the spine and body limber, and helps to keep our joints in working order. Yoga can also aid in preventing injury. Yoga also teaches us to forgive ourselves. It’s all about letting go of what is not needed. We all can use a healthy dose of that in our lives.

Add stretching and yoga into your fitness routine, as part of a wholistic approach to natural beauty.

Relaxation and Meditation.

Stress kills, but it doesn’t have to. Stress is something we all deal with on a daily basis, and a very good way to help combat this, is through relaxation and meditation techniques. Taking 10 to 15 minutes to calm yourself during your busy day can help to reduce levels of cortisol in the body. Too much cortisol can lead to weight gain, and we don’t want that! Adding meditation, or any form of relaxation into your daily routine can work wonders for your mood and well being. It is so worth it to make the time for yourself. There are several books, youtube channels, and websites devoted to this topic. I highly recommend looking into them. I usually squeeze a few moments after a cardio session to add some relaxation techniques into my routine.

Meditation and relaxation. Find your happy place!

SMILE!! it’s contagious!

Smile! This is the one thing we all can do, and the best part is that it is totally free. Nothing is as beautiful on a woman than her smile. Smiling is like an instant face lift! Here is an amazing article about why smiling is literally contagious.

SMILE LADIES! spread the love!

Makeup to enhance, and not cover up!

I feel that too many women are being sucked into the trap of believing they have to put ten layers of foundation, contouring, and literally spray painting their faces to look beautiful. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. When a woman uses makeup in the correct way, it should highlight her beauty, and not make her look “fake” or overdone. A lot of cosmetics are also filled with gobs of cancer causing chemicals. As stated above, we are trying to avoid these. Look for healthier alternatives. A simple google search can help you to find the right products for you. I have been told by many men, that they actually prefer a woman who doesn’t wear a lot of makeup. So who was it that led women to believe that gobs of makeup on their faces actually looks good? The beauty industry, that’s who. Don’t buy into all the hype. Be natural…be yourself.

Some examples of makeup done right…

Here are some photos of makeup done right. These women don’t look like drag queens, they look like actual living, breathing women and not mannequins! They look like themselves. You see their faces, and not a bunch of “plaster and cement”. They don’t look fake. They look amazing.

Start on a natural beauty routine today…

Embarking on your own natural beauty journey doesn’t need to be complicated, in fact it is the opposite. Just letting go of old beliefs, and starting a new healthy habit, sets you off in the right direction. It is proven time and again, that these methods mentioned above work. People have been using things like essential oils on their skin, eating healthy pure food, and practicing Yoga for thousands of years. In our modern society, we are lead to believe that if you use said “product” you will some how become more beautiful, and vibrant. These are all marketing techniques used to increase a company’s bottom line. If you are going to support a health or beauty company, just make sure they are an ethical one. Believe me when I say there are many businesses out there who just don’t care about your health, and will add toxic things to their products in order to make more of a profit. Please don’t support these companies. Do your research. It is worth it to us all in the end.

I hope all of you have a beautiful and healthy week! Take good care of yourself, and please feel free to share any tips or ideas for natural beauty below. We would love to hear from you!